An Apprentice Affair
by Glossfur of Ravenclaw
Summary: If you've ever wondered how Palepaw and Birchsong's affair came to life, now you know.


"Palekit, wake up!" her brother, Rainkit meowed impatiently. Palekit groaned.

"Why do I have to wake up? It's literally the crack of dawn. Nobody's awake," she growled, and went back to sleep.

"But guess what today is?" Rainkit asked excitedly.

"I know, we're becoming apprentices. But I don't care, because all I want to do is become a queen in the nursery. That doesn't require warrior training, so why should I bother?" Palekit grumbled.

"But life-long queens don't get to do anything fun, like fight in battles and stuff," Rainkit meowed.

"You wouldn't understand, Rainkit. You're not a she-cat," Palekit said firmly.

Grayflower, their mother who had been listening to the kits quarrel with amusement, said, "Now, now, Rainkit, you ought to respect Palekit's wishes. However, Palekit, you may change your mind. You might not want to be a queen all your life. It's a very boring life in the nursery."

"I don't believe it! Goldeneyes was a queen her whole life and she seems fine," Palekit meowed.

"Well, just don't make these decisions that will impact your life too lightly," Grayflower purred. "I was planning on being a warrior with no mate, but when Cloudpelt came along, I realized how much I was missing." Cloudpelt was their father, but he recently died in a border-patrol scuffle with ShadowClan that went a bit too far. Palekit didn't really miss him, but sometimes, looking at the other kits, she wished she had a father.

* * *

"Palekit, you have reached the age of six moons, and it is time for you to be apprenticed. From this day on, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Palepaw. Your mentor will be Birchsong. Rosestar, the RiverClan leader, meowed. "Birchsong, you have proven yourself loyal and brave, and I hope you will pass these qualities to Palepaw."

Palepaw looked at Birchsong nervously. He was the deputy of the Clan, and Palepaw felt very special to have him as her mentor. He gently touched noses with her. As he did, Palepaw felt a small shock in her body. She had no idea what it was. She was so distracted she missed part of Rainkit's ceremony.

"—courageous and clever. I hope you will pass these qualities to Rainpaw."

"Palepaw! Rainpaw! Palepaw! Rainpaw!" the Clan cheered, Grayflower the loudest.

* * *

"Who can tell me how to catch a fish?" Birchsong asked. The apprentices were standing by the river with their mentors to hunt. It had been four moons since Palepaw was apprenticed, and a few other kits had been made apprentices.

Palepaw said, "You stand by the river, but don't let your shadow fall on it. Then you wait for some fish to come up, and you use your claws to swipe them up."

Birchsong purred. "Very good, Palepaw! Now, would you like to demonstrate?" Palepaw stood by the edge of the river making sure the fish wouldn't see her shadow. Then, she unsheathed her claws when she saw a big, fat trout swimming towards her. Quick as lightning, she swiped her claws at the trout. Sprinkles of water flew in the air, the trout's belly severed by her sharp claws.

"Wow!" Rainpaw exclaimed.

"That was awesome," Goldpaw agreed.

"Very impressive, Palepaw," Birchsong meowed, surprising Palepaw with a friendly flick of his tail. It sent shivers down her spine, in a good way. Palepaw couldn't yet decipher these feelings, but they felt good.

* * *

"Come on, Palepaw, concentrate!" Birchsong snapped. Palepaw exited her fantasy of being a queen for life.

"What?" she said dumbly. She and Birchsong were doing a one-on-one training, but Palepaw was too busy admiring his sleek, shiny brown fur to notice.

After feeling confused about her feelings for another moon, Palepaw realized that she was madly in love with Birchsong. For real. She loved the way he talked, it sounded as clear as water but as sweet as honey. She loved his bushy tail and his beautiful brown eyes. There was just one catch, though: he had a mate. And Silverstripe was currently pregnant with mini-Birchsongs. She hated it.

"Palepaw, this past moon you haven't been concentrating at all! What happened to my star apprentice who could catch a ton of fish?" Birchsong asked gently.

"It's…complicated," she mumbled.

"Eyeing another tom?" he asked unexpectedly.

"Y-yes, how did you know?" she asked dumbly.

"Because I see you staring at me intently wherever I go. Palepaw, I'm not blind," Birchsong purred.

Palepaw felt mortified. "Please, don't tell anyone," was the first thing that came to mind. Then, she gasped and slapped her tail over her mouth. She was considering making a run for it, but realized that other cats might have taken her actions the wrong way. After all, who runs from the deputy?

"Don't worry. I feel the same way about you," he said, purring slightly at her behavior.

"Me? But I'm much too young," Palepaw stammered. Again, it was the first thing that came to mind. An _appropriate_ answer would have been, "But Silverstripe's your mate."

"Yes, but I'm young, too," he replied, sidling with her. Palepaw felt sparks flying between their pelts.

She managed to get out, "But Silverstripe…she's expecting…"

"Silverstripe was a mistake," Birchsong said firmly. "You're the only one I truly love. I love _you_. I love your fur and the way it sparkles, your shining eyes, and…just _you._ The old Palepaw, not the one who's off in a different world."

"And if I change, will…will you love me?" Palepaw gasped. She wasn't thinking about how many hearts she would be breaking by loving Birchsong. All she was thinking about was their future together, Birchsong finally realizing that his true mate was Palepaw and Silverstripe could just be their friend.

"I will always love you, Palepaw," Birchsong promised, licking the top of her head gently, in a protective, fatherly sort of way. Palepaw loved the way he seemed to protect her, like a replacement father, but even better.

* * *

"I, Rosestar, leader of RiverClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on these apprentices. They have trained hard to understand the ways of the warrior code. Do you, Palepaw and Rainpaw, promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?" Rosestar meowed.

"I do," Palepaw meowed, Rainpaw a bit more hesitant. But all Palepaw could think about was, _I'm finally going to be a warrior! I can be with Birchsong forever now! Now that Silverstripe kitted, Birchsong doesn't have any more obligations towards her._

"Then I give you your warrior name. Palepaw, from this moment on, you will be known as Palefoot. StarClan honors your intelligence and bravery, and we welcome you as a full warrior of RiverClan." Palefoot licked Rosestar's shoulder and excitedly went to sit by Birchsong. She tried to control her excitement as Rainpaw was receiving his name.

"Rainpaw, from this moment on, you will be known as Raingaze. StarClan honors your strength and determination, and we welcome you as full warrior of RiverClan." Raingaze also licked Rosestar's shoulder respectfully and went to sit by his mentor, Applefur.

"Palefoot! Raingaze!" the Clan cheered the new warriors' names. Palefoot ducked her head embarrassedly. Birchsong nuzzled Palefoot's ear lovingly. Palefoot thought she saw Birchsong's kit, Glosskit, staring at her weirdly, but she dismissed the thought. Glosskit was too young. She wouldn't know about Palefoot and Birchsong's special relationship.

"As part of tradition, the new warriors will sit in a silent vigil to guard camp," Rosestar meowed. Palefoot and Raingaze wrestled through the crowd of cats to sit vigil while everyone else went to their dens to have a good night's sleep. But Palefoot had other ideas.

"Raingaze, I'm going to see Birchsong," she meowed to her brother, who would do anything for her. Raingaze was always protective of Palefoot and was the only one Palefoot confessed her relationship to Birchsong to. While he deeply disapproved of Palefoot's actions, he didn't tell anyone and covered for her whenever she needed it.

"Fine, but be careful. If anyone sees you, I am not involved," Raingaze growled. Palefoot pressed her pelt against him in comfort.

"Don't worry, we'll be careful. I knew I could count on you!" she meowed cheerfully. She scampered off into her and Birchsong's secret meeting place. Palefoot didn't know it, but a lot of things would change that night. And not all of those changes would be good.

* * *

 **Well, now you know how Palepaw and Birchsong got together. I hope this explained some things in my other story, Living in the Shadow! Please review both stories, and see you soon! Bye!**


End file.
